New ORFE building to be named for longtime trustee Sherrerd ’52
Princeton’s newest engineering building will be named Sherrerd Hall, in honor of the late John J.F. “Jay” Sherrerd ’52, a longtime University trustee and volunteer. Donations from Sherrerd and a family trust funded the construction of the recently opened building, which houses the Department of Operations Research and Financial Engineering (ORFE) and the Center for Information Technology Policy.
Research and teaching at Sherrerd Hall will cross disciplines and address questions in business, finance, public policy, and technology, President Tilghman said in a University statement. “Jay Sherrerd long understood the value of collaboration in his years of service to Princeton, and his gift will provide us not only a place for these interactions to flourish, but also a beautiful addition to campus,” she said.
Sherrerd, an investment banker who died in April at age 78, served as a University trustee for 20 years, directed the Princeton University Investment Co. for 10, and was co-chairman of the 250th Anniversary campaign. He had a deep interest in applied research related to finance, according to his daughters, Susan ’86 and Anne *87.
Sherrerd Hall, a three-story glass-faced building designed by the Los Angeles architectural firm Frederick Fisher and Partners, stands next to Mudd Library and across from the Friend Center. Its design employs several features to promote sustainability, including the University’s first “green roof.” Trays of vegetation will be installed to reduce rainwater runoff, insulate the building, and conserve energy.
Inside the main entrance, a central atrium and open staircase greet visitors. Offices occupy much of the building’s perimeter, with common spaces interspersed on each floor. ORFE department chair Robert Vanderbei said that “the whole atmosphere will be congenial to collaborative research.”
ORFE, which became a department in 1999, has been the most popular engineering major in recent years. More than 200 students, or about a third of all engineering concentrators, are enrolled as ORFE majors.
The University did not release the amount of Sherrerd’s donation or the final construction costs of the building, adhering to the wishes of the family, according to Chris Emery, a spokesman for the School of Engineering and Applied Science.
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